1997 Donruss Elite

Description

1997 Donruss Elite is a 150-card set, released exclusive to The Hobby, in February, 1997. The entire base set is printed on foil-board and shares the design of a similarly-named hockey card set that was released in 1996.

Distribution

18 cards per pack, eight cards per pack (MSRP: $3.49). Hobby only.

Insertion Ratios

Cards	Total Cards	Numbered To	Odds
Base	150	-	?
Gold Stars	150	-	1:9
Passing the Torch	12	1350	?
Leather and Lumber	10	500	?
Turn of the Century	20	3000
Turn of the Century Die-Cut	20	500	?
Passing the Torch Autographed	12	150	?

Checklist

Base Set

<sql2wiki database="carddb"> SELECT num, player, info FROM cards WHERE (year = 1997) AND (setname = 'Donruss Elite'); </sql2wiki>

Parallels

Gold Stars

Gold Stars is a parallel of the 150-card base set. The distinctive gold foil fronts easily differentiate them from their silver-foiled base-issue brethren.

The following cards were erroneously printed with a silver (rather than gold) logo on front: 6, 15, 25, 32, 42, 47, 57, 60, 69 and 70. Corrected gold logo versions of these cards do exist but are in far shorter supply though secondary market trading values remain similar due to general indifference. The set is considered complete with the erroneous silver logo cards.

Inserts

Passing the Torch

This 12-card insert set features eight players eight single cards and four double-sided dual-player cards. Each card is serial-numbered to 1500 copies with the first 150 copies of each card autographed by the respective player(s) (See below).

<sql2wiki database="carddb"> SELECT num, player, info FROM cards WHERE (year = 1997) AND (setname = 'Donruss Elite Passing the Torch'); </sql2wiki>

Leather and Lumber

This ten-card "materials" insert set features player photos printed on two unique materials. The fronts display a player image on real wood card stock with the end of a baseball bat as background. The backs carry another player photo printed on genuine leather card stock with a baseball and glove as background. Only 500 of each card was produced and are sequentially numbered.

<sql2wiki database="carddb"> SELECT num, player, info FROM cards WHERE (year = 1997) AND (setname = 'Donruss Elite Leather and Lumber'); </sql2wiki>

Turn of the Century

Turn of the Century is a 20-card set showcasing the stars of the next millennium. Each card is serial-numbered to 3500 copies with the first 500 copies die-cut.

<sql2wiki database="carddb"> SELECT num, player, info FROM cards WHERE (year = 1997) AND (setname = 'Donruss Elite Turn of the Century'); </sql2wiki>

Promos

Donruss issued the entire 20-card Turn of the Century set as promos. Each card has "SAMPLE" printed diagonally across both sides. In addition, the reverse side has a gold-colored marble back. Each card is serial-numbered "PROMO/3500".

Autographs

Passing the Torch Autographs

The first 150 copies of each Passing the Torch insert were autographed by the respective player(s).

<sql2wiki database="carddb"> SELECT num, player, info FROM cards WHERE (year = 1997) AND (setname = 'Donruss Elite Passing the Torch Autographs'); </sql2wiki>

Donruss/Panini Elite
Pinnacle Brands Era: 1997 - 1998
Donruss-Playoff Era: 2001 - 2002 - 2003 - 2004 - 2005
Panini America Era: 2015 Panini Elite
Donruss Elite Extra Edition: 2001 - 2002 - 2003 - 2004 - 2007 - 2008 - 2009 - 2010 - 2011
Panini Elite Extra Edition: 2012 - 2013 - 2014 - 2015 - 2016 - 2017 - 2018 - 2019 - 2020 - 2021 - 2022 - 2023